


Merrily Merrily Down the Stream...

by HolleringHawk65



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: M/M, drabble ish
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-01
Updated: 2015-09-01
Packaged: 2018-04-18 13:22:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 845
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4707461
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HolleringHawk65/pseuds/HolleringHawk65
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Batman's paralyzed and the rest of the family is nowhere in sight when the Joker shows up for the kill, and it's looking like the end.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Merrily Merrily Down the Stream...

It was public, in the heart of downtown Gotham. There were so many people--so many _children_. When had that ever stopped any villain before though?

Bruce was on his back, unable to move his lower half. He was still trying to process how his legs became paralyzed. His arms felt heavy but he could still move them a little bit.

Somebody was yelling on the comms. Tim, maybe?

_This might be it._

And then she was next to him. Her hair was a mess and her blue eyes were blown wide. Maybe from fear. Bruce’s own were feeling heavy; he tried to tell himself not to shut them. He stared up at Harley, focusing on her. Somewhere, he wondered if at this proximity she could see them.

“C’mon Bats,” she whispered, grabbing one of his hands and trying to pull him up. He felt like a lead doll--there was no way that she was going to be able to move him on her own. “We have to go, c’mon. _They have this_. It’s alright, we can-”

“I can’t.” It hurt to talk. Was it supposed to hurt? Everything ached.

She stopped trying and kneeled next to him, still holding his hand in one of hers while the other reached out for his jaw. Her fingers were tender against his skin and he wanted to lean into the touch, close his eyes. “Bruce...”

“I’m sorry.”

Her hand left his jaw so that both of hers could hold the one. “Don’t apologize.”

They fell silent as he focused on breathing, assessing what was wrong, though his head hurt too much to think. Maybe he should tell her that. Maybe he should tell her-

“Harley, the- Jo-”

She looked behind her and screamed as the Joker grabbed her by the shoulder and threw her across the plaza. The hand that she had held fell, practically useless. He couldn’t even activate his comm.

They needed a miracle. 

Dick was yelling for Damian, Jason telling everyone he was trying to clear a path to the plaza, Tim reminding them that the League was coming and _just hang on guys_ , Barbara was telling them that Harley needed help. Stephanie and Kate was on the other side of the city.

He was glad that Cassandra wasn’t here. That someone would make it through this.

Harley rolled to avoid another hit from the Joker. Her gun was in the other direction and _this couldn’t be happening, not when Bruce is bleeding out_.

The villain looked crazed as he caught her again, lifting her up. “Are you happy that you turned your smile upside down? That you left _me_ for your King? Well,” and his eyes lit up, like he had a stroke of genius, “a joker can become _anything_ and I am _the_ Joker. Do you like that, Harls? Do you want to be fucked by the new king?

She had started to tear up because everything was so _wrong_. It was all a joke that had gone too far, nothing like it _used_ to be, and that’s why she went to Bruce. “Puddin’, you can put-put me down.”

“ _I don’t want to put you down_. I want to tear you limb from limb and scatter you across this city so your precious _Batsy can never find you_.”

She had figured for a long time that the Joker would be the cause of her death. She’d just hoped that she had more time.

He pulled out a gun, one of those peashooter types and she almost sobbed because even her death was a joke. But maybe she deserved it.

* * *

 

Bruce cried out when he heard the shot above all of the chaos. The Joker looked over at him, and surrounded by the destruction he had caused he looked like the devil. He dropped Harley, and _maybe_ she was still breathing because he saw her chest move.

Bruce turned over. Started to drag himself over to her. To hold her as they both died, because could feel it. Or maybe he wanted it.

And when he got over to her, all he could do was feel for a hand, his body giving out on him. He couldn’t feel anything through the gauntlet, couldn’t tell if her eyes were glassy or if she was focused on him.

And he wasn’t sure when, but Jason was over to them, trying to say something, and maybe he’d been right to be angry when he came back. Maybe the Joker should have been put down.

* * *

 

Bruce bolt up in bed.

Next to him, Harley lifted her head, eyes still sleepy. “Bad dream?”

He looked down at her, heart calming down as he did.

“Yeah.”

“Wanna talk about it?”

He shook his head and wrapped his arms around her. She didn’t say anything as she snuggled against his chest, going back to sleep quickly.

He couldn’t fall asleep, his mind turning the dream over and over until he came to a conclusion: the next time he faced the Joker, he had to kill him, for everyone’s sake.

**Author's Note:**

> ...Life is but a dream


End file.
